Arizona Utility Opposing Rooftop Solar Seeking to Provide Panels

Arizona Public is seeking regulatory approval to install 20 megawatts of residential solar systems on about 3,000 homes, according to a July 28 filing with the Arizona Corporate Commission. The Phoenix-based unit of Pinnacle West Capital Corp. is proposing to pay $30 a month for 20 years for use of consumers’ roofs. The proposal, if approved by regulators, means the company will compete with leasing companies such as Sunrun Inc. and SolarCity Corp. that helped make Arizona the second largest photovoltaic state, said Corey Garrison, Chief Executive officer of Southface Solar Electric, a Phoenix-based panel installer. “This is a massive expansion of the monopoly into an area that is well served by the free market,” Garrison said in a statement yesterday. Jim McDonald, a spokesman for Arizona Public Service, the state’s largest utility, didn’t immediately provide an executive...